Saint Bracelet

The Feast of Saint Benedict

Friday, July 2, 2010 by Bart Tesoriero

Saint Benedict

Join Autom as we celebrate the feast of Saint Benedict on July 11th. Many people are familiar with the St. Benedict medal, as well as the St. Benedict crucifix and other items. Our current pope, Benedict XVI, chose his name partly because of his devotion to Saint Benedict, who is the Patron protector of all Europe.

Saint Benedict:

Saint Benedict was born in Nursia, Italy, in 480 AD. Educated at Rome, Benedict was repulsed by the city’s vice and degeneration, and fled to Subiaco. There he met Romanus, a monk who brought him to a secret mountain cave, where he lived as a hermit for three years. Disciples gathered around Benedict, attracted by his holiness and miraculous gifts. Some monks asked Benedict to lead them, but grew angry at his strict rule, and gave him poisoned wine. Benedict blessed the cup, which shattered before their eyes, and he returned to Subiaco.

Benedict then settled at Monte Cassino, a mountain top overlooking the beautiful southern Italian farmland. He destroyed a pagan temple, brought the inhabitants back to Christianity, and around 530 AD founded the monastery which became the birthplace of Western monasticism. Disciples again flocked to Benedict as his reputation for holiness, wisdom, and miracles spread across the countryside.

Benedict organized the monks into a single monastic community and wrote his famous Rule, prescribing common sense, moderate asceticism, prayer, study, work, and community life under one superior, in order to help each monk truly love God and attain the Kingdom of heaven. Benedict’s Rule was to affect spiritual and monastic life in the West for centuries to come, as monks kept alive the light of faith and learning through the Dark Ages. Their motto was: Ora et Labora—Pray and Work.

Saint Benedict could read consciences, prophesy, and rebuff the attacks of the devil. His holiness and charisms remind us that God continues to send holy ones in our midst to help us all follow His universal call to union with Himself in true joy, peace, and service. Benedict died at Monte Cassino in 547 and was buried with his beloved twin sister, Saint Scholastica. In 1964, Pope Paul IV named Saint Benedict, the Father of Western Monasticism, as Patron Protector of Europe.

Autom encourages you to get your St. Benedict Crucifix or St. Benedict Medal and pray the Prayer of Saint Benedict with us today! Head over to Autom.com to purchase a St. Benedict crucifix, St. Benedict medal, or a Benedict saint bracelet to help you in your devotion.

Prayer of Saint Benedict

Gracious and holy Father,
grant us the intellect to understand You,
reason to discern You, diligence to seek You,
wisdom to find You, a spirit to know You, and a heart to meditate upon You.

May our ears hear You, may our eyes behold You,
and may our tongues proclaim You.
Give us grace that our way of life may be pleasing to You,
that we may have the patience to wait for You
and the perseverance to look for You.

Grant us a perfect end - Your holy presence,
a blessed resurrection and life everlasting.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Help For Haiti - Donations of Catholic Church Supplies Bring Hope

Thursday, February 18, 2010 by Paul Greene

I should introduce myself. My name is Paul Greene and I am the Sales Manager for the reseller division of Autom. For years it has been my unique privilege to help make sure that your local Catholic Book Stores and Christian Suppliers have a quality selection of glass rosaries, saint bracelets, and First Holy Communion gifts available for your special occasion. Over the years this has put me in contact with wonderful people from all around the globe who daily pour their love for Christ into everything they do. It doesn't take long in this industry before you realize that what we do is about more than just the bottom line. Whether that be helping a mother select a St. Benedict Crucifix for her daughter's first home, providing a Baptism gift for a new Christian, or even providing the altar candles that will light the altar as we mourn the passing of someone loved, each day we are blessed with the opportunity to play some small role in bringing God’s love to people’s lives. This opportunity presented itself in a unique way when the earthquake struck Haiti on January 12, 2010.

Like many people around the world I was profoundly moved by the plight of the Haitian people. In moments millions had lost all that they had. While aid poured in to the Haitian people from around the world, we were looking for a way that we as a company could contribute. The answer came in an appeal sent out from the National Church Goods Association. The NCGA passed on a request from a small parish in Florida that was collecting donations for the churches of Haiti. In the earthquake the churches also lost everything. Church vestments, altar linens, chalices and ciboria, in short all the things needed to celebrate the sacraments for the people of Haiti. For these churches such a loss was devastating. International aid would help the Haitian people rebuild their lives, but even with the very humble nature of what they had before the earthquake, it could take decades for the churches to replace what they lost.   As one of top manufacturers of affordable church supplies in the world, we were in a unique position to make an impact in this area.

We presented this opportunity to all of the employees of Autom asking if they would help us raise money for this cause. Additionally the owners of the company agreed to match dollar for dollar all funds raised. These funds could then be used to purchase the most needed items for the Haitian parishes. We could buy many of the items at cost and stretch every dollar to its utmost. The response from the employees was overwhelming. People dug deep and donated all that they could. Many who had previously donated to other relief efforts made additional sacrifices to be able to contribute. Employees who could not financially contribute offered up prayers for Haiti and even went to give blood on their own as a way to help the Haitian people, (as evidenced by Monday morning band-aids and some bruised arms). We even had friends and family of employees who gave money to the effort. It was wonderful to see the outpouring of support. It made me proud to be a part of this organization.   This is not an easy time financially for many, but they still reached out to help those in need.

Using the funds raised, we focused on getting complete Catholic Chalice and Ciborium sets for the churches. This had been identified as an area of special need due to the high cost and very limited number of manufacturers of these items.   We also sent sets of liturgical vestments for the priests, including chasubles and clergy stoles. When all was gathered together we were able to donate over $18,000 worth of Catholic church supplies to the cause. It is my prayer that through these items God may touch the lives of the Haitian people. And for my part I find that through this experience I have found a renewed appreciation for my own blessings and for the group of people God has surrounded me with.

The Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe is December 12th

Friday, December 4, 2009 by Alicia Reidhead

One day Juan Diego, an Indian Catholic living near Mexico City, heard a voice calling to him as he walked to church. A young maiden dressed as an Aztec Princess appeared to him in a golden beam of light, saying she was the Virgin Mary, Mother of God. She requested Juan to have the bishop build a church on the hill of Tepeyac, so she could show her compassion to his people.

Juan related the request to Bishop Juan de Zumarraga. Somewhat skeptical, the bishop asked for a sign. Meanwhile, Juan put off his visit with the Lady until he could get a priest to administer the last rites to his dying uncle.

Suddenly the Virgin Mary appeared, telling Juan he had nothing to fear, as she had cured his uncle. Miraculously, Castilian roses bloomed on the hillside, which Juan took to the doubting bishop.

Kneeling before the bishop, Juan let the roses fall from his tilma. To everyone’s surprise and wonder, the image of the Lady was imprinted on the tilma! Falling to his knees, Bishop Zumarraga accepted the sign and fulfilled Mary’s wish by building a church in her honor, where her image was enshrined.

In the next few decades, eight million Indians converted to Jesus. Our Lady of Guadalupe, “La Alma de la Gente”, took her rightful place in the souls of her children.

If you are looking for an affordable and unique Our Lady of Guadalupe devotional gift this beautiful rosary saint bracelet features images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and various other saints on the back of each rose shaped bead. As an exclusive deal to our new Autom blog visitors we are offering this rosary bracelet for $1 Off the regular price! Now on sale for only $7.99* through December 12!

*Be sure to click through this blog post for your sale price which will be reflected upon checkout.